Cabinet praises $480mn Qatar aid to Palestinians

TheCabinet’s regular meeting, presided over by HE the Prime MinisterSheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa al-Thani, yesterday praised thedirectives of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thaniallocating $480mn to the Palestinian people in the West Bank and GazaStrip, to assist them in meeting their daily needs amidst the difficultcircumstances imposed on them by the Israeli occupation forces.Afterthe meeting, which was held at the Amiri Diwan, HE the Minister ofJustice and Acting Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs Dr Issa Saadal-Jafali al-Nuaimi stated the following:The Cabinet underlined thatQatar’s support to the Palestinians embodies the bonds of brotherhoodbetween the Qatari and Palestinian people, and is an extension ofQatar’s firm positions towards the brotherly Palestinian people.TheCabinet reiterated Qatar’s condemnation of the brutal Israeli shellingof the Gaza Strip, which left dozens of people dead and injured, sayingit is in a flagrant violation of the international law, the Charter ofthe United Nations and the international legitimacy resolutions on thePalestinian cause.The Cabinet demanded an urgent and resoluteinternational action to stop Israel’s aggressive practices against thePalestinian people and to provide them with protection and enable themto obtain all their legitimate rights, foremost of which is the right toestablish their independent state with Jerusalem as its capital.The Cabinet then considered the topics listed on its agenda as follows:TheCabinet approved a draft law amending some provisions of laws relatedto energy affairs, and to refer it to the Advisory Council.The draft law includes the amendment of some provisions of the following laws:— Law No 8 of 2004 on the protection of marine oil and gas facilities.— Decree Law No 15 of 2007 on regulating the marketing and sale of government regulated products outside Qatar.—Decree Law No 11 of 2012 on the governmental regulation for the saleand purchase of chemical and petrochemical products produced in Qatar.— Law No 4 of 2018 regulating the supply of electricity and water.Theabove mentioned laws will be amended by replacing the phrase “Ministerof State for Energy Affairs” with the phrase “Minister of Energy andIndustry”, wherever mentioned in Law No 8 of 2004, Decree Law No 11 of2012 and Law No 4 of 2018; and by replacing the phrase “Minister ofState for Energy Affairs” with the phrase “Minister of Energy andIndustry” mentioned in the Articles 11, 18, 19 and 21 of Decree Law No15 of 2007 referred to herein.The Cabinet later approved a draft lawamending some provisions of Law No 21 of 2015 regulating the entry,exit and residence of expatriates.The Cabinet also approved a draft decree inviting the Municipal Council to convene.Meanwhile, the Cabinet approved the following:1-Draft Amiri Decision amending some provisions of Decision No 19 of 2011regarding the establishment of the Standing Committee for WaterResources.2- Draft Amiri Decision amending some provisions ofDecision No 1 of 2018 establishing the Financial Sustainability SteeringCommittee for Qatar General Electricity and Water Corporation.3-Draft Cabinet Decision amending some provisions of Decision No 73 of2014 establishing the Standing Committee for Monitoring Fuel Filling andStorage Stations.The Cabinet then reviewed the following topics and took the appropriate decisions thereon:1- The annual report of the National Traffic Safety Committee and its recommendations.Thecommittee, which is established in the Ministry of Interior, isresponsible for developing policies and plans in the field of traffic,studying traffic problems and proposing methods of treatment,co-ordination and co-operation with different bodies whose work affectsthe proper regularity of traffic, and proposing the development oflegislation related to traffic and road and transport engineering, inaccordance with international standards and the requirements of thecontinued developments of roads and transportation.2- Therecommendation of the Advisory Council regarding the general debaterequest submitted by a number of members on traffic accidents in Qatar.3-The letter of HE the Minister of Finance on a proposal to amend someprovisions of the Customs Law promulgated by Law No 40 of 2002.